The Brownings; Their Life and Art

Book excerpt: The Brownings Their Life and Art Lilian Whiting CHAPTER I 1812-1833 "Allons! after the Great Companions! and to belong to them!""To know the universe itself as a road-as many roads-asroads for travelling souls." The Most Exquisite Romance of Modern Life-Ancestry and Youth of Robert Browning-Love of Music-Formative Influences-The Fascination of Byron-A Home "Crammed with Books"-The Spell of Shelley-"Incondita"-Poetic Vocation Definitely Chosen-"Pauline." Such a very page de Contes is the life of the wedded poets, Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning, that it is difficult to realize that this immortal idyl of Poetry, Genius, and Love was less than fifteen years in duration, out of his seventy-seven, and her fifty-five years of life. It is a story that has touched the entire world ..". with mystic gleams, Like fragments of forgotten dreams," this story of beautiful associations and friendships, of artistic creation, and of the entrance on a wonderful realm of inspiration and loveliness. At the time of their marriage he was in his thirty-fifth, and she in her forty-first year, although she is described as looking so youthful that she was like a girl, in her slender, flower-like grace; and he lived on for twenty-eight years after "Clouds and darknessFell upon Camelot," with the death of his "Lyric Love." The story of the most beautiful romance that the world has ever known thus falls into three distinctive periods, -that of the separate life of each up to the time of their marriage; their married life, with its scenic setting in the enchantment of Italy; and his life after her withdrawal from earthly scenes. The story is also of duplex texture; for the outer life, rich in associations, travel, impressions, is but the visible side of the life of great creative art. A delightful journey is made, but its record is not limited to the enjoyment of friends and place; a poem is written whose charm and power persist through all the years. We are delighted to publish this classic book as part of our extensive Classic Library collection. Many of the books in our collection have been out of print for decades, and therefore have not been accessible to the general public. The aim of our publishing program is to facilitate rapid access to this vast reservoir of literature, and our view is that this is a significant literary work, which deserves to be brought back into print after many decades. The contents of the vast majority of titles in the Classic Library have been scanned from the original works. To ensure a high quality product, each title has been meticulously hand curated by our staff. Our philosophy has been guided by a desire to provide the reader with a book that is as close as possible to ownership of the original work. We hope that you will enjoy this wonderful classic work, and that for you it becomes an enriching experience.